Safety Coby Bryant’s last game came as a member of the Seahawks and he’d be happy if his next one featured the Seahawks as his opponent.
Bryant signed with the Bears this month after helping the Seahawks win Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara in February. The Seahawks will be celebrating that win when they open the 2026 season at home in early September and Chicago is one of the teams on their home schedule this year.
During an appearance on Up & Adams, Bryant said that being in the house for that celebration would suit him fine.
“I wouldn’t mind starting the season off out there, honestly,” Bryant said. “Weather will be nice. The whole world will be watching.”
The Bears nearly made it to the NFC Championship Game in Seattle during the playoffs and a win over the defending champs in Week 1 would be a good way to kick off their bid to make it even further this time around.
Bears Clips
As George Costanza learned in his effort to be known as T-Bone, it’s not easy to create your own nickname. That isn’t stopping Bears quarterback Caleb Williams.
Williams has applied for multiple trademark protections as to the term “Iceman.”
A search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office records shows that multiple filings were made on March 16, 2026, with the intent of using the term on: eyewear; sunglasses; downloadable posters; downloadable computer software featuring digital trading cards; athletic bags; tote bags; backpacks; luggage; water bottles sold empty; sports bottles sold empty; plastic water bottles sold empty; mugs; sweatshirts; shirts; tee shirts; hats; jerseys; jackets; vests; athletic sporting goods, athletic and sports equipment; footballs; and balls for games.
Attorney Josh Gerben was the first to spot the filing. He explained that the name is tied to the “silhouette of Williams mid-throw, inspired by a pivotal fourth-and-8 play during a playoff matchup in Green Bay last season.”
Some compared the image to the Michael Jordan “Jumpman” logo. Jumpman, Iceman. You get the idea.
Hopefully, Caleb will beat Neil Watkins from accounting to Iceman.
The Bears announced a pair of additions to their defense on Wednesday afternoon.
In addition to the previously reported signing of defensive lineman James Lynch, they also announced that they have signed linebacker Jack Sanborn to a one-year deal.
Sanborn spent the first three years of his NFL career in Chicago, but left to sign with the Cowboys last year. He started five of the six games he played in Dallas and recorded 34 tackles before missing the rest of the season with a groin injury.
Sanborn had 198 tackles, 4.5 sacks, an interception, and a fumble recovery in 48 games for the Bears during his first stint with the team.
The Bears are set to add a defensive lineman to their roster.
According to multiple reports, they have agreed to a deal with James Lynch. It’s a one-year deal in Chicago for the veteran lineman.
Lynch spent the last two seasons with the Titans and appeared in all 34 of the team’s games. He had 45 tackles and 1.5 sacks.
The move to the Bears will be a return to the NFC North for Lynch, who entered the league as a Vikings fourth-round pick in 2020. He had 53 tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery while playing for Minnesota.
The Cardinals announced the signings of linebacker Jack Gibbens, safety Andrew Wingard and defensive lineman Andrew Billings on Monday.
Gibbens signed a two-year deal, and Billings and Wingard signed one-year contracts.
Gibbens, 27, is heading into his fifth season after three years in Tennessee and one in New England. He was with Cardinals General Manager Monti Ossenfort with the Titans.
He started eight games for the Patriots last season, appearing in the other nine games, and he totaled 81 tackles, eight tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and four pass breakups.
The Cardinals have Mack Wilson Sr. and Cody Simon at the position, but the release of Akeem Davis-Gaither created a need for depth.
Billings, 31, is entering his ninth season, having spent the past three seasons in Chicago. In 2025, he started 14 of 17 games played and totaled 31 tackles and a sack.
Cincinnati made him a fourth-round pick in 2016, and he has also played for the Browns and Raiders.
Wingard’s arrival in Arizona was reported last week.
The Giants hosted center Ryan Bates on a free agent visit on Monday.
Bates, 29, has spent the past two seasons with the Bears.
The Giants are seeking a backup behind starter John Michael Schmitz Jr.
Bates began his NFL career in 2019 with the Bills and was in Buffalo for five seasons. He played 73 games with 19 starts for the Bills, including 15 starts at left guard in 2022.
The Bears acquired him for a fifth-round pick in 2024. He played 19 games with two starts, both in 2024, when he had two stints on injured reserve (with shoulder and elbow issues early in the season and a concussion late in the season).
Cornerback Nahshon Wright’s play with the Bears during the 2025 season landed him a contract with the Jets and it earned him the most performance-based pay in the league for last year as well.
The NFL announced that Wright earned more than $1.44 million in performance-based pay. The bonus more than doubles Wright’s base salary for the season.
Wright signed with the Bears after being released by the Vikings last April. He was named to the Pro Bowl after recording 80 tackles, five interceptions, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries during the regular season.
The performance-based pay fund is part of the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement to compensate all players based on a formula encompassing their playing time and salary. It paid out more than $542 million for the 2025 season.
Browns safety Ronnie Hickman earned over $1.293 million for second place and tackle Elijah Wilkinson earned over $1.272 million for his work with the Falcons. Wilkinson has since signed with the Cardinals.
Panthers safety Nick Scott, former Commanders guard Chris Paul, Ravens guard Andrew Vorhees, Vikings defensive end Jalen Redmond, Steelers guard Mason McCormick, Chiefs defensive back Chamarri Conner, and Patriots safety Craig Woodson make up the rest of the top 10 recipients of performance-based pay for 2025.
The NFL Players Association currently is meeting in San Diego. And the union has addressed one fairly significant piece of business.
Free-agent linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin has been re-elected for a second term as president of the NFLPA.
The union announced the outcome on Sunday night.
“I’m honored that the Board has trusted me to continue serving as president,” Reeves-Maybin said in a statement. “There’s important work ahead, and I’m looking forward to continue advocating on behalf of our membership to protect our rights and advance our interests.”
Six prior members of the executive committee were re-elected: Oren Burks, Cam Heyward, Ted Karras, Case Keenum, Brandon McManus, and Thomas Morstead.
The four new executive committee members are Tanoh Kpassagnon (Treasurer), Jonathan Greenard, Harrison Phillips, and Zaire Franklin. They will replace Calais Cambell, Austin Ekeler, Thomas Hennessy, and Ryan Kelly.
Reeves-Maybin would not have been eligible to run again, per NFLPA rules, if he hadn’t played in 2025. The Bears added him to the roster late in the season, renewing his eligibility to serve.
The re-election of Reeves-Maybin happened despite a tumultuous 2025, which included an inexplicable decision to conceal a partial win in a collusion case against the league and the resignation of executive director Lloyd Howell. It’s not yet known whether he was opposed in his bid for the presidency.
In the coming days, the NFLPA will elect a new executive director. The candidates include interim executive director David White, former NFLPA president and former NFLPA chief strategy officer J.C. Tretter, and American Conference Commissioner Tim Pernetti.
Tretter is generally regarded as the favorite to win the job. He served as president during the hiring of Howell. Which can fairly be described as a disaster for the union.
The Cardinals have a new returner.
Arizona agreed to terms with Devin Duvernay on a one-year deal worth up to $2.5 million, according to Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report.
Duvernay, 28, spent last season with the Bears, and he averaged 26.7 yards on 40 kickoff returns and 11.0 yards on 21 punt returns. He had only five targets as a wide receiver, catching two passes for 26 yards and a touchdown.
He entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Ravens in 2020, and he earned Pro Bowl honors in 2021 and 2022. In 2021, Duvernay was also an All-Pro returner.
For his career, Duvernay averages 11.8 yards on punt returns and 25.4 yards on kick returns, with two career kickoff returns for touchdowns.
Duvernay will replace Greg Dortch, who remains a free agent, as the team’s primary returner.
Veteran safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson signed this week with the Bills. In his introductory press conference, he addressed one of the biggest issues hovering around him — a reputation for being a not-ideal teammate.
Gardner-Johnson said he’s not concerned about perceptions.
“I look at it like this,” Gardner-Johnson said, “if — and I don’t throw shade. I don’t throw — because locker rooms that I’ve been in, we’ve won. But the situation I got traded to, like, it’s hard to go into something where you’re not really familiar. Like, it’s like spurts. . . . That’s like going to McDonald’s. You can eat McDonald’s, but you don’t know how to make the fries. So, it’s like, I’m not saying you didn’t know how to play football, it’s just like, you have to gather that relationship while trying to get better while trying — and the season comes quick and all. Once the moves, the draft picks get in, it’s on you.”
He was traded to Houston last year. After the deal was done, Gardner-Johnson said the Eagles shipped him out because they were “scared of a competitor.”
The Texans abruptly cut him after an 0-3 start, without trying to trade him. After a short stint with the Ravens, he landed in Chicago.
With the Bears, he had 10 regular-season appearances with seven starts. He also started the divisional-round playoff game against the Rams.
“For me, I look at, like, every place I’ve been with, I won,” Gardner-Johnson said. “If it was a locker room problem, I just result back to whatever came out. Why now? Like, why now? If I was a locker room problem, like why now? What was the news flashes when we were winning, going 14-3? When we were on the top of the mountain. . . . When I was catching six [interceptions], but where was those like — but why now? So I just take it with a grain of salt . . . it is what it is.”
Gardner-Johnson, 28, has played for the Saints, Eagles, Lions, Eagles again, Texans, Ravens, and Bears. He has appeared in 87 regular-season games with 71 starts, and he was a member of the Super Bowl LIX championship team in Philadelphia.
